U.S. patent application number 16/864394 was filed with the patent office on 2020-08-13 for storage device.
The applicant listed for this patent is Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.. Invention is credited to Yuzuka ISOBE, Takeshi KIKUCHI, Yoshinari MATSUYAMA, Masaki SHIKANAI.
Application Number | 20200256117 16/864394 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 66437790 |
Filed Date | 2020-08-13 |
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United States Patent
Application |
20200256117 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
KIKUCHI; Takeshi ; et
al. |
August 13, 2020 |
STORAGE DEVICE
Abstract
A storage device includes a shutter having a vertically divided
dome shape formed by cutting a one-end-closed cylindrical shape at
two planes, the one-end-closed cylindrical shape being formed by
closing an upper end of a cylindrical portion whose axis line is
along an up-down direction, an arc-shaped lower portion reinforcing
member which has a higher rigidity than the cylindrical portion, a
housing, which includes an opening portion, the opening portion
being opened and closed by the shutter rotating around the axis
line, a bearing portion provided in the housing, which suspends and
supports the ceiling surface portion, a lower end support portion,
which supports a lower surface of the lower portion reinforcing
member at a plurality of locations; and an inner side support
portion, which supports an inner peripheral surface of the lower
portion reinforcing member at a plurality of locations.
Inventors: |
KIKUCHI; Takeshi; (Osaka,
JP) ; MATSUYAMA; Yoshinari; (Osaka, JP) ;
SHIKANAI; Masaki; (Kanagawa, JP) ; ISOBE; Yuzuka;
(Osaka, JP) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd. |
Osaka |
|
JP |
|
|
Family ID: |
66437790 |
Appl. No.: |
16/864394 |
Filed: |
May 1, 2020 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
PCT/JP2018/041252 |
Nov 6, 2018 |
|
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16864394 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A47B 49/00 20130101;
E05D 15/02 20130101; A47B 55/00 20130101; E06B 3/903 20130101; E05Y
2900/20 20130101 |
International
Class: |
E06B 3/90 20060101
E06B003/90; E05D 15/02 20060101 E05D015/02; A47B 49/00 20060101
A47B049/00 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Nov 10, 2017 |
JP |
2017-217688 |
Claims
1. A storage device comprising: a shutter having a vertically
divided dome shape formed by cutting a one-end-closed cylindrical
shape at two planes, the one-end-closed cylindrical shape being
formed by closing an upper end of a cylindrical portion whose axis
line is along an up-down direction by a ceiling surface portion,
the two planes intersecting each other on the axis line or in a
vicinity of the axis line; an arc-shaped lower portion reinforcing
member, which has a higher rigidity than the cylindrical portion
and is integrally fixed to a lower end surface of the cylindrical
portion; a housing, which includes an opening portion, the opening
portion being opened and closed by the shutter rotating around the
axis line which serves as a rotation center; a bearing portion
provided in the housing, which suspends and supports the ceiling
surface portion in a manner that enables the ceiling surface
portion to freely rotate around the axis line; a lower end support
portion, which is provided in the housing and supports a lower
surface of the lower portion reinforcing member along the lower
surface; and an inner side support portion, which is provided in
the housing and supports an inner peripheral surface of the lower
portion reinforcing member along the inner peripheral surface.
2. The storage device according to claim 1, wherein the lower end
support portion is a plurality of lower portion rollers which are
rotatably supported at a plurality of locations on a horizontal
support shaft orthogonal to the axis line, and the inner side
support portion is a plurality of inner side rollers which are
rotatably supported at a plurality of locations on a vertical
support shaft in a same direction as the axis line.
3. The storage device according to claim 1, wherein the bearing
portion is formed in a fan shape extending radially outward about
the axis line, and the bearing portion includes an upper portion
reinforcing member which supports the ceiling surface portion.
4. The storage device according to claim 1, wherein the bearing
portion, the lower end support portion, and the inner side support
portion are set to have a larger allowable stress than a load that
plastically deforms the shutter from above or a load that
plastically deforms the shutter from an outer side in a radial
direction.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)
[0001] This application is a continuation of International Patent
Application No. PCT/JP2018/041252 filed on Nov. 6, 2018, which
claims the benefit of priority of Japanese Patent Application No.
2017-217688 filed on Nov. 10, 2017, the contents of which are
incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The present disclosure relates to a storage device which
stores an object to be stored.
2. Description of the Related Art
[0003] JP-A-2004-316289 referred to as Patent Literature 1
discloses an indoor crime prevention shutter which is attached to
an indoor side of an opening portion of a building. In such an
indoor crime prevention shutter, a shutter box is provided at an
indoor side upper portion of the opening portion of the building.
The shutter box accommodates a slat winding portion which performs
a slat winding or unwinding operation. A guide mechanism, which
guides slats wound or unwound from the slat winding portion, is
provided on two sides of the opening portion. The indoor crime
prevention shutter opens and closes the planar opening portion by
lifting and lowering the slats guided to the two sides by the guide
mechanism. The guide mechanism supports a load acting on the slats
in one direction of inner direction or outer direction of the
opening portion. [0004] Patent Literature 1: JP-A-2004-316289
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0005] In a shutter device in related art, stored objects cannot be
covered with a shutter while supporting loads from a plurality of
directions.
[0006] The present disclosure has been devised in view of the
above-described situation in the related art, and a non-limited
object thereof is to provide a storage device which supports loads
from a plurality of directions, even when an external force is
applied, to exactly protect an object to be stored in a storage
space covered by a shutter.
[0007] The storage device according to the present disclosure
includes: a shutter having a vertically divided dome shape formed
by cutting a one-end-closed cylindrical shape at two planes, the
one-end-closed cylindrical shape being formed by closing an upper
end of a cylindrical portion whose axis line is along an up-down
direction by a ceiling surface portion, the two planes intersecting
each other on the axis line or in a vicinity of the axis line; an
arc-shaped lower portion reinforcing member, which has a higher
rigidity than the cylindrical portion and is integrally fixed to a
lower end surface of the cylindrical portion; a housing, which
includes an opening portion, the opening portion being opened and
closed by the shutter rotating around the axis line which serves as
a rotation center; a bearing portion provided in the housing, which
suspends and supports the ceiling surface portion in a manner that
enables the ceiling surface portion to freely rotate around the
axis line; a lower end support portion, which is provided in the
housing and supports a lower surface of the lower portion
reinforcing member at a plurality of locations along the lower
surface; and an inner side support portion, which is provided in
the housing and supports an inner peripheral surface of the lower
portion reinforcing member at a plurality of locations along the
inner peripheral surface.
[0008] According to the present disclosure, the object to be stored
in the storage space covered by the shutter can be exactly
protected by supporting the loads from the plurality of directions
even when the external force is applied.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0009] In the accompanying drawings:
[0010] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a storage device according
to the present embodiment;
[0011] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a state where a shutter of
the storage device shown in FIG. 1 is opened;
[0012] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a shutter opening and
closing mechanism viewed obliquely from above;
[0013] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the shutter opening and
closing mechanism of FIG. 3 viewed obliquely from below;
[0014] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the shutter opening and
closing mechanism of FIG. 3 viewed from a back surface side;
[0015] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the shutter opening and
closing mechanism of FIG. 3 in which the shutter is moved in an
opening direction;
[0016] FIG. 7 is a side view of the shutter opening and closing
mechanism viewed from an opening end side of the shutter;
[0017] FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along A-A of FIG.
7;
[0018] FIG. 9 is an enlarged view of B portion of FIG. 8;
[0019] FIG. 10 is a main part perspective view showing an example
of a shutter driving mechanism placed in a storage device 11
according to the present embodiment; and
[0020] FIG. 11 is a schematic view conceptually showing the shutter
driving mechanism placed in the storage device 11 according to the
present embodiment.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS
[0021] (Background of Present Disclosure)
[0022] As an example of a storage device in related art, in the
indoor crime prevention shutter of Patent Literature 1 described
above, since the opening portion is opened and closed by the planar
shutter, the stored object cannot be taken in and out from a
plurality of directions. On the other hand, when an external force
is applied to a ceiling surface of the shutter in a case where the
opening portion is covered with a polyhedron-shaped rotatable
shutter, stress concentrates on a rotating portion, and the shutter
is excessively deformed (for example, deformed to an extent where
the use thereof as a shutter is interfered), so that usability of
the invention may be poor.
[0023] Therefore, in the following embodiment, an example of a
storage device, which is capable of exactly protecting an object to
be stored in a storage space covered by a shutter by supporting
loads from a plurality of directions even when an external force is
applied, will be described.
[0024] Hereinafter, the embodiment (hereinafter, referred to as
"the present embodiment") that specifically discloses the storage
device according to the present disclosure will be described in
detail with reference to the drawings as appropriate. Unnecessarily
detailed descriptions may be omitted. For example, a detailed
description of a well-known matter or a repeated description of
substantially the same configuration may be omitted. This is to
prevent the following description from being unnecessarily
redundant and to facilitate understanding of those skilled in the
art. The accompanying drawings and the following description are
provided for those skilled in the art to facilitate thorough
understanding of the present disclosure, and are not intended to
limit the claimed subject matters.
[0025] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a storage device 11
according to the present embodiment. In the present embodiment,
upper and lower, front and rear, left and right directions follow
directions of arrows shown in FIG. 1.
[0026] The storage device 11 according to the present embodiment
includes a housing 13, a shutter 15, a lower portion reinforcing
member 17, a bearing portion 19 (see FIG. 3), a lower end support
portion 21 (see FIG. 3), and an inner side support portion 23 (see
FIG. 5) as main components.
[0027] The housing 13 has, for example, a hexahedral outer shape.
In the present embodiment, the housing 13 is formed of a
substantially rectangular parallelepiped or a rectangular
parallelepiped which is thin in a front-rear direction and high in
an up-down direction. One corner portion of the housing 13, which
is sandwiched between an upper surface 25, a front surface 27, and
a side surface 29, is removed by a back surface 31 parallel to the
front surface 27, a bottom surface 33 parallel to the upper surface
25, and an inner side surface 35 parallel to the side surface 29.
The housing 13 includes an opening portion 37 at an inner corner
portion where the corner portion is removed. The opening portion 37
can be opened and closed by the shutter 15.
[0028] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a state where the shutter 15
of the storage device 11 shown in FIG. 1 is opened. An axis line 39
(see FIG. 3) of the shutter 15 is in the up-down direction. The
shutter 15 rotates about the axis line 39 which serves as a
rotation center. The housing 13 is opened and closed by the shutter
15 rotating about the axis line 39 which serves as the rotation
center. A rotation angle of the shutter 15 is set to approximately
90.degree.. When the opening portion 37 is opened as shown in FIG.
2, almost the whole shutter 15 is accommodated in the housing
13.
[0029] The rotation angle of the shutter 15 is not limited to
approximately 90.degree.. The rotation angle of the shutter 15 can
be set to any angle as long as the rotation angle is substantially
equal to or less than 180.degree.. When the rotation angle is
approximately 180.degree., the shutter 15 can be formed into a
half-split dome shape. However, the shutter 15 may have a dome
shape whose circumferential length is longer than that of the
half-split shape as long as exposure of an unaccommodated portion
is acceptable.
[0030] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a shutter opening and
closing mechanism 41 viewed obliquely from above. The shutter 15 in
the present embodiment has a vertically divided dome shape. The
shutter 15 includes a cylindrical portion 43 whose axis line 39 is
in the up-down direction. The cylindrical portion 43 has a
one-end-closed cylindrical shape (also referred to as a bottomed
cylindrical shape) whose upper end is closed by a ceiling surface
portion 45. The vertically divided dome shape is a shape in which
the one-end-closed cylindrical shape is cut at two planes
intersecting each other on the axis line or in the vicinity of the
axis line of the cylindrical portion 43. In the present embodiment,
the two planes are orthogonal to each other. Accordingly, the
ceiling surface portion 45 has a fan shape obtained by
substantially dividing a circle into four equal parts. Similarly, a
cylinder of the cylindrical portion 43 is also divided into four
equal parts to obtain vertically divided curved plate shapes.
[0031] The cylindrical portion 43 is divided in a circumferential
direction thereof so as to have a circumferential length as that of
the fan-shaped ceiling surface portion 45, and is coupled to the
ceiling surface portion 45. Although normal lines of the ceiling
surface portion 45 and the cylindrical portion 43 are orthogonal to
each other in the present embodiment, the present invention is not
limited thereto. The shutter 15 may have, for example, a vertically
divided dome shape in which a hemispherical ceiling surface portion
is connected to the cylindrical portion 43.
[0032] For example, polypropylene (PP), a hard resin material, or
the like may be used as a material of the shutter 15 in addition to
carbon steel (soft iron: SS400 or the like), carbon steel (hard
steel: S55C or the like), stainless steel (SUS304) and aluminum
(Al1050).
[0033] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the shutter opening and
closing mechanism 41 of FIG. 3 viewed obliquely from below. The
lower portion reinforcing member 17 is integrally fixed to a lower
end surface of the cylindrical portion 43 of the shutter 15. The
lower portion reinforcing member 17 is longer than a
circumferential length of the lower end surface of the cylindrical
portion 43. A portion of the lower portion reinforcing member 17
extending from the lower end surface of the cylindrical portion 43
serves as an extended portion. The extended portion extends along a
movement path of the shutter 15. When the shutter 15 closes the
opening portion 37 (see FIG. 1), the extended portion has an extra
length for connecting the shutter 15 to a shutter driving mechanism
47 to be described below, which is provided inside the housing 13.
The lower portion reinforcing member 17 has a higher rigidity than
that of the cylindrical portion 43. Reference strength of the
shutter 15 is improved by fixing the lower portion reinforcing
member 17 to the lower end surface of the cylindrical portion
43.
[0034] The lower end support portion 21 is provided in the housing
13 of the storage device 11. The lower end support portion 21
supports a lower surface of the lower portion reinforcing member
17. The lower end support portion 21 is provided at a plurality of
locations (for example, five locations in the present embodiment)
along the lower surface of the lower portion reinforcing member 17.
It should be noted that the number of the lower end support
portions 21 is not limited to five.
[0035] In the present embodiment, the lower end support portion 21
is, for example, a lower portion roller 49. The lower portion
roller 49 is rotatably supported by a horizontal support shaft 51
orthogonal to the axis line 39. The horizontal support shaft 51 is
fixed to a support member 53. The support member 53 is fixed to the
housing 13.
[0036] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the shutter opening and
closing mechanism 41 of FIG. 3 viewed from a back surface side. The
inner side support portion 23 is provided in the housing 13 of the
storage device 11. The inner side support portion 23 supports an
inner peripheral surface of the lower portion reinforcing member
17. The inner side support portion 23 is provided at a plurality of
locations (for example, five locations in the present embodiment)
along the inner peripheral surface of the lower portion reinforcing
member 17. It should be noted that the number of the inner side
support portions 23 is not limited to five.
[0037] In the present embodiment, the inner side support portion 23
is, for example, an inner side roller 55. The inner side roller 55
is rotatably supported by a vertical support shaft 57 in the same
direction as the axis line 39. An opposite end of the vertical
support shaft 57, which rotatably supports the inner side roller
55, is fixed to the housing 13.
[0038] Although a configuration in which the lower end support
portion 21 and the inner side support portion 23 are the lower
portion roller 49 and the inner side roller 55 is described in the
present embodiment, the lower end support portion 21 and the inner
side support portion 23 are not limited thereto. For example, the
lower end support portion 21 and the inner side support portion 23
do not have to include rotating bodies, such as rollers, as long as
the lower end support portion 21 and the inner side support portion
23 lower portion reinforcing member 17 can contact and support the
lower portion reinforcing member 17 with low friction.
[0039] Although a configuration in which the lower portion roller
49 and the inner side roller 55 are supported in the housing 13 is
described in the present embodiment, the lower portion roller 49
and the inner side roller 55 can also be provided on the lower
portion reinforcing member 17. In this case, the lower portion
roller 49 and the inner side roller 55 provided on the lower
portion reinforcing member 17 are supported by a rail member fixed
to the housing 13.
[0040] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the shutter opening and
closing mechanism 41 of FIG. 3 in which the shutter 15 is moved in
an opening direction. The storage device 11 includes the bearing
portion 19 which rotatably suspends and supports the shutter 15.
The bearing portion 19 is provided in the housing 13, and rotatably
supports the ceiling surface portion 45 of the shutter 15 around
the axis line 39. The lower surface of the lower portion
reinforcing member 17 is supported by the lower portion roller 49
in the storage device 11. Even when the lower portion roller 49 is
not supported, the shutter 15 of the storage device 11 can be
supported in a suspended state only by an upper portion of the
bearing portion 19.
[0041] FIG. 7 is a side view of the shutter opening and closing
mechanism 41 viewed from an opening end side of the shutter 15. As
described above, the ceiling surface portion 45 of the shutter 15
has a fan shape obtained by substantially dividing a circle into
four equal parts, and the cylinder of the cylindrical portion 43 is
also divided into four equal parts to obtain the vertically divided
curved plate shapes. The bearing portion 19 is connected to a
rotation center portion of the fan shape on a radial direction
inner side (a side opposite to an arc side). Considering a case
where the lower portion roller 49 is not supported, the shutter 15
is supported by the rotation center portion so as to form a
cantilever shape. Even in a configuration in which the lower
portion reinforcing member 17 is actually supported by the lower
portion roller 49 as in the present embodiment, when a load is
applied from the ceiling surface portion 45, stress is likely to
concentrate at the rotation center portion.
[0042] FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along A-A of FIG. 7.
The cross-sectional line A-A in FIG. 7 coincides with the axis line
39 of the cylindrical portion 43. In the storage device 11,
strength of the shutter 15 is improved by reinforcing the rotation
center portion of the ceiling surface portion 45. That is, the
bearing portion 19 includes an upper portion reinforcing member
59.
[0043] FIG. 9 is an enlarged view of B portion of FIG. 8. The upper
portion reinforcing member 59 extends radially outward about the
axis line 39 and is formed in a fan shape. The upper portion
reinforcing member 59 has a shape similar to that of the ceiling
surface portion 45 and is fixed to the rotation center portion of
the ceiling surface portion 45. The upper portion reinforcing
member 59 is provided on a lower surface side of the rotation
center portion and supports the ceiling surface portion 45. The
rotation center portion of the ceiling surface portion 45 and the
upper portion reinforcing member 59 are fixed by a plurality of
through bolts 61 (see FIG. 6).
[0044] The bearing portion 19 includes a rolling bearing 63. The
rolling bearing 63 includes an outer ring 65 and an inner ring 67.
The rolling bearing 63 includes a plurality of rolling elements 69
which are rotatably provided between an outer ring raceway in the
outer ring 65 and an inner ring raceway in the inner ring 67.
[0045] A bearing side upper portion reinforcing member 75, which
includes a large diameter portion 71 and a small diameter portion
73, is fixed to an outer periphery of the outer ring 65. An outer
periphery of the small diameter portion 73 of the bearing side
upper portion reinforcing member 75 is fixed to the upper portion
reinforcing member 59. An inner periphery of the large diameter
portion 71 of the bearing side upper portion reinforcing member 75
is fixed to the outer periphery of the outer ring 65.
[0046] Meanwhile, an inner periphery of the inner ring 67 of the
rolling bearing 63 is fixed to an outer periphery of a cylindrical
sleeve 79 which includes a flange portion 77. Downward movement of
the inner ring 67 is restricted by a retaining ring 81 attached to
the outer periphery of the sleeve 79. The flange portion 77 of the
sleeve 79 is fixed to the housing 13 by a fixing bolt 83, so that
the bearing portion 19 is supported in a state of being suspended
from the housing 13. Accordingly, the rolling bearing 63, whose
inner ring 67 is fixed to a housing side, rotatably supports the
rotation center portion of the ceiling surface portion 45 by the
outer ring 65 via the bearing side upper portion reinforcing member
75 and the upper portion reinforcing member 59.
[0047] Although a radial bearing is exemplified as the rolling
bearing 63 in FIG. 9, the rolling bearing 63 may also be a thrust
bearing or an angular bearing. By using the thrust bearing or the
angular bearing as the rolling bearing 63, the rolling bearing 63
can receive a higher axial direction load than in the case where
the radial bearing is used. The rolling bearing 63 may also be an
oilless bush.
[0048] The same material, such as soft iron (SS400), can be used
for the shutter 15 and the upper portion reinforcing member 59.
Tensile strength of the soft iron is 450 N/mm.sup.2. When the same
material is used for the shutter 15 and the upper portion
reinforcing member 59, a plate thickness T of the upper portion
reinforcing member 59 is formed to be larger than a plate thickness
t of the shutter 15 especially in a small radius region r of the
rotation center portion where stress concentration is likely to
occur.
[0049] The bearing portion 19, the lower end support portion 21,
and the inner side support portion 23 of the storage device 11 are
set to have a larger allowable stress .sigma. (see FIG. 11) than a
load F that plastically deforms the shutter 15 from above (see FIG.
11) or a load F that plastically deforms the shutter 15 from a
radial direction outer side (see FIG. 11). Here, the allowable
stress refers to a maximum value of stress that can be withstood by
corresponding portions (for example, the bearing portion 19, the
lower end support portion 21, and the inner side support portion
23) such that use of the storage device 11 as a product can be
guaranteed under an applied load (for example, rotation of the
shutter 15 is restrained), and the same applies hereinafter. In
other words, even when the load F described above is applied to
each of or one of the bearing portion 19, the lower end support
portion 21, and the inner side support portion 23 of the storage
device 11, the shutter 15 is deformed first, so that deformation of
the bearing portion 19 and the like of the storage device 11 is
restrained, and the shutter 15 is avoided from being broken or
damaged to such an extent that the rotation thereof is disabled. As
a result, even if the shape of the shutter 15 is slightly changed
by the load F, an outer shape (in other words, an outer frame) of
the shutter 15 does not change greatly in the storage device 11, so
that an object to be stored (for example, a package body) inside
the storage device 11 can be exactly protected.
[0050] FIG. 10 is a main part perspective view showing an example
of the shutter driving mechanism 47 placed in the storage device 11
according to the present embodiment. In the present embodiment, the
shutter 15 is opened and closed by the shutter driving mechanism
47. The shutter driving mechanism 47 includes an electric motor 85,
a timing pulley 87 fixed to a driving shaft of the electric motor
85, a pair of guide pulleys 89, and a timing belt 91.
[0051] A belt accommodation groove 93 is formed on an outer
periphery of the lower portion reinforcing member 17. The timing
belt 91 is accommodated in the belt accommodation groove 93. Two
ends of the timing belt 91 accommodated in the belt accommodation
groove 93 are fixed to two ends of the lower portion reinforcing
member 17 by a belt holding member 95.
[0052] A bracket 97 is fixed to the electric motor 85 which is
fixed to the housing 13. The pair of guide pulleys 89 are spaced
apart from each other and rotatably supported by the bracket 97
along the belt accommodation groove 93. The driving shaft of the
electric motor 85 penetrates between the pair of guide pulleys 89
on a side opposite to the belt accommodation groove 93 with respect
to the guide pulley 89. The timing pulley 87 is fixed to the
driving shaft. The timing belt 91 whose direction is changed by the
pair of guide pulleys 89 is wound around an outer periphery of the
timing pulley 87.
[0053] As a result, when the electric motor 85 is driven, the
timing pulley 87 is rotated. When the timing pulley 87 rotates, the
timing belt 91 which is wound thereon is sent in a rotation
direction thereof. As a result, the shutter driving mechanism 47
rotates the shutter 15 forward and backward by the timing belt 91
whose two ends are fixed to the lower portion reinforcing member
17, so as to allow the opening portion 37 to open and close.
[0054] Although the shutter 15 is opened and closed by the electric
motor 85 in the present embodiment, the shutter driving mechanism
may also be a mechanism in which a handle or the like is attached
to the shutter 15 and the shutter 15 is opened and closed
manually.
[0055] Next, effects of the configuration of the storage device 11
according to the present embodiment will be described.
[0056] FIG. 11 is a schematic view conceptually showing the shutter
driving mechanism 47 placed in the storage device 11 according to
the present embodiment.
[0057] In the storage device 11 according to the present
embodiment, the shutter 15 is a member having the vertically
divided dome shape formed by cutting the one-end-closed cylindrical
shape at two planes, the one-end-closed cylindrical shape being
formed by closing the upper end of the cylindrical portion 43 whose
axis line 39 is along the up-down direction by the ceiling surface
portion 45, the two planes intersecting each other on the axis line
or in the vicinity of the axis line. The lower portion reinforcing
member 17 is the arc-shaped member which has a higher rigidity than
the cylindrical portion 43 and is integrally fixed to the lower end
surface of the cylindrical portion 43. The housing 13 includes the
opening portion 37 which is opened and closed by the shutter 15
rotating around the axis line 39 serving as the rotation center.
The bearing portion 19 is provided in the housing 13, suspends and
supports the ceiling surface portion 45 in the manner that enables
the ceiling surface portion 45 to freely rotate around the axis
line 39. The lower end support portion 21 is provided in the
housing 13 and supports the lower surface of the lower portion
reinforcing member 17 at the plurality of locations along the lower
surface. The inner side support portion 23 is provided in the
housing 13 and supports the inner peripheral surface of the lower
portion reinforcing member 17 at the plurality of locations along
the inner peripheral surface.
[0058] Accordingly, in the storage device 11 according to the
present embodiment, the vertically divided dome-shaped shutter 15
is attached to the opening portion 37 of the housing 13 so as to
freely open and close the opening portion 37. The housing 13
includes a storage space on an inner side of the opening portion
37. The shutter 15 is supported by the housing 13 in the state
where the ceiling surface portion 45 is suspended by the bearing
portion 19. Moreover, the lower portion reinforcing member 17 is
integrally fixed to the lower end surface of the cylindrical
portion 43, so that the lower portion of the shutter 15 is
reinforced to improve rigidity thereof. Further, since the lower
surface of the lower portion reinforcing member 17 is supported by
the lower end support portion 21, the lower portion reinforcing
member 17 supports an external force acting on the shutter 15 from
above. In addition, since the inner peripheral surface of the lower
portion reinforcing member 17 is supported by the inner side
support portion 23, the shutter 15 supports an external force
acting on the radial direction inner side from outside.
[0059] As a result, in the storage device 11, the bearing portion
19, the lower portion reinforcing member 17, the lower end support
portion 21, and the inner side support portion 23 support loads
from a plurality of directions, thereby ensuring strength for
restraining breakage of a shutter support structure. As a result,
the storage device 11 can cover the convenient opening portion 37,
which allows a stored object to be taken in and out from a
plurality of directions, by the shutter 15 having the polyhedron
shape, and can reliably protect the stored object covered by the
shutter 15.
[0060] The shutter 15 of the storage device 11 can be made thinner
as compared with a case where the load is received only by the
upper portion of the bearing portion 19.
[0061] The lower end support portion 21 of the storage device 11 is
the plurality of lower portion rollers 49 which are rotatably
supported by the horizontal support shaft 51 orthogonal to the axis
line 39. The inner side support portion 23 is the plurality of
inner side rollers 55 which are rotatably supported by the vertical
support shaft 57 in the same direction as the axis line 39.
[0062] Accordingly, in the storage device 11, since the lower end
support portion 21 is the lower portion rollers 49, the lower
surface of the lower portion reinforcing member 17 can be supported
with low friction by the rotating lower portion rollers 49 during
opening and closing operations. Similarly, since the inner side
support portion 23 is the inner side rollers 55, the inner
peripheral surface of the lower portion reinforcing member 17 can
be supported with low friction by the rotating inner side rollers
55 during the opening and closing operations. As a result, the
shutter 15 can ensure the strength for restraining the breakage of
the shutter support structure and restrain an increase in a
rotational driving force for opening and closing.
[0063] In the storage device 11, the bearing portion 19 is formed
in the fan shape extending radially outward about the axis line 39,
and includes the upper portion reinforcing member 59 which supports
the ceiling surface portion 45.
[0064] Accordingly, the bearing portion 19 of the storage device 11
includes the upper portion reinforcing member 59. The upper portion
reinforcing member 59 extends radially outward about the axis line
39 and is formed in the fan shape. The rotation center side of the
upper portion reinforcing member 59 is fixed to the outer ring 65
of the bearing portion 19. That is, the upper portion reinforcing
member 59 is rotatably supported by the housing 13 via the bearing
portion 19. The upper portion reinforcing member 59 is integrally
fixed to the rotation center portion of the ceiling surface portion
45 of the shutter 15. Accordingly, the external force applied to
the ceiling surface portion 45 from above is transmitted from the
bearing portion 19 to the housing 13 via the upper portion
reinforcing member 59. As a result, the shutter 15 can secure
strength for restraining breakage caused by stress concentration at
the rotation center portion of the ceiling surface portion 45
connected to the bearing portion 19 with a small area.
[0065] Further, the bearing portion 19, the lower end support
portion 21, and the inner side support portion 23 of the storage
device 11 are set to have the larger allowable stress a than the
load F that plastically deforms the shutter 15 from above or the
load F that plastically deforms the shutter 15 from the radial
direction outer side. In other words, even when the load F
described above is applied to each of or one of the bearing portion
19, the lower end support portion 21, and the inner side support
portion 23 of the storage device 11, the shutter 15 is deformed
first, so that deformation of the bearing portion 19 and the like
of the storage device 11 is restrained, and the shutter 15 is
avoided from being broken or damaged to such an extent that the
rotation thereof is disabled. As a result, even if the shape of the
shutter 15 is slightly changed by the load F, the outer shape (in
other words, the outer frame) of the shutter 15 does not change
greatly in the storage device 11, so that the object to be stored
(for example, the package body) inside the storage device 11 can be
exactly protected.
[0066] Accordingly, in the storage device 11, the bearing portion
19, the lower end support portion 21, and the inner side support
portion 23 serve as the shutter support structure. The allowable
stress of the shutter support structure is set to be larger than
the load F that plastically deforms the shutter 15. In other words,
the load F that plastically deforms the shutter 15 is set to be
smaller than the allowable stress a of the shutter support
structure. It should be noted that the load F that plastically
deforms the shutter 15 from above is a load F that is equal to or
less than tensile strength (maximum stress) of a shutter material
and equal to or more than an elastic limit.
[0067] Therefore, when the load F that plastically deforms the
shutter 15 acts, the shutter 15 of the storage device 11
plastically deforms before the shutter support structure is broken.
Accordingly, when the load F acts on the ceiling surface portion 45
or the cylindrical portion 43, the storage device 11 can restrain
the shutter support structure from being broken and restrain the
shutter from colliding with the stored object directly. In other
words, the storage device 11 can absorb impact or the like by
plastically deforming the shutter 15, so as to protect the stored
object.
[0068] Therefore, according to the storage device 11 according to
the present embodiment, the loads from the plurality of directions
can be supported, so that the stored object stored in the storage
space covered by the shutter 15 can be protected.
[0069] Although the embodiment has been described above with
reference to the drawings, it is needless to say that the present
disclosure is not limited to such examples. It will be apparent to
those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can
be conceived within the scope of the claims, and it should be
understood that such changes and modifications also belong to the
technical scope of the present disclosure. Constituent elements in
the above-described embodiment may be optionally combined within a
range not departing from the spirit of the invention.
[0070] In the present embodiment described above, the shutter 15,
the upper portion reinforcing member 59, and the lower portion
reinforcing member 17 may be integrally formed. In this case, by
appropriately changing thicknesses of the shutter 15, the upper
portion reinforcing member 59, and the lower portion reinforcing
member 17, strength (for example, rigidity) of the shutter 15, the
upper portion reinforcing member 59, and the lower portion
reinforcing member 17 can be changed.
[0071] The present disclosure is useful as a storage device which
can exactly protect an object to be stored in a storage space
covered by a shutter by supporting loads from a plurality of
directions even when an external force is applied.
[0072] Reference signs used in the specification and drawings are
listed as below. [0073] 11: Storage device [0074] 13: Housing
[0075] 15: Shutter [0076] 17: Lower portion reinforcing member
[0077] 19: Bearing portion [0078] 21: Lower end support portion
[0079] 23: Inner side support portion [0080] 37: Opening portion
[0081] 39: Axis line [0082] 43: Cylindrical portion [0083] 45:
Ceiling surface portion [0084] 49: Lower portion roller [0085] 51:
Horizontal support shaft [0086] 55: Inner side roller [0087] 57:
Vertical support shaft [0088] 59: Upper portion reinforcing
member
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